1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an in-vehicle apparatus configured to perform a timer operation and control the timer operation.
2. Description of Related Art
Patent document 1 discloses a configuration having a stopwatch function, which starts and stops a timer operation (measurement of an amount of time elapsed) in response to a user manipulation on a predetermined button.    Patent Document 1: JP-2008-76068A corresponding to US 2008/0068934A
The inventors of the present application consider that, with the development of GUI (Graphical User Interface) technology for an in-vehicle apparatus, a stopwatch function such as disclosed in Patent Document 1 will be implemented in an in-vehicle apparatus. Discussion will be given below on an in-vehicle apparatus that simply has a stopwatch function in a manner similar to that disclosed in Patent Document 1. In this case, a timer operation is started in response to a user manipulation on a predetermined timer start button that is positionally-fixed. The timer operation is stopped in response to a user manipulation on a predetermined timer stop button that is also positionally-fixed. When a situation is that a user manipulates the positionally-fixed timer start or stop button in a stopped vehicle, no difficulty arises. However, when a situation is that a user manipulates the positionally-fixed timer start or stop button in a traveling vehicle, the user should search for location of the timer start or stop button while paying attention to driving, and should manipulate the button after conforming the location of the button. Hence, usability is low. As a result, even if an in-vehicle apparatus has a stopwatch function, the stopwatch function may not be used with the vehicle being traveling.